"Never wear your ear phones away from your desk - anywhere," says business etiquette consultant Ellen Reddick. It doesn't matter if you're just going to the bathroom, down the hall to the copy machine, down to the lobby for a snack - if you're leaving your desk, take them off.

"Don't hum along or tap your foot or desk," Reddick says. It kind of defeats the point of headphones if your co-workers have to listen along anyway.

If you're not using a headset, you need to have a conversation with the other people who work within earshot.

"Trying to attain group consensus is also a smart idea," says Vicky Oliver, consultant and author of several business books.

Ten percent of survey respondents admitted to judging a co-worker based on their choice of music, according to Spotify Ltd.

Pop music is the most popular, with rock a close second, according to Spotify. But if you work with a huge fan of Gregorian chants or the Three Tenors and your music is shared, Oliver suggests trading days: Pink today, Puccini tomorrow.